Intel Skylake / Kaby Lake

[MrTeal]

With 1S workstation and HEDT moving to the mainstream PCH starting with Skylake, I'd be interested to hear speculation on whether that might reduce validation time and help bring the release of HEDT parts closer to the mainstream releases. Lower cost motherboards would be welcome too, but I'm not holding my breath there.

 

[ShintaiDK]

With 1S workstation and HEDT moving to the mainstream PCH starting with Skylake, I'd be interested to hear speculation on whether that might reduce validation time and help bring the release of HEDT parts closer to the mainstream releases. Lower cost motherboards would be welcome too, but I'm not holding my breath there.

It will lower mobo cost a tad. But else nothing as long as it comes from the E5 line.

 

[mikk]

Nice. They should update their review after today's article and by the time they publish this memory scaling investigation.

I don't expect much because Anandtech is doing CPU game tests in a GPU limited environment mainly. In this case faster RAM doesn't help.

 

[Arachnotronic]

With 1S workstation and HEDT moving to the mainstream PCH starting with Skylake, I'd be interested to hear speculation on whether that might reduce validation time and help bring the release of HEDT parts closer to the mainstream releases. Lower cost motherboards would be welcome too, but I'm not holding my breath there.

I think thanks to the 10nm slip, HEDT and mainstream releases will be forced closer together.

In late 2016 Intel will launch Kaby Lake based on the Skylake CPU. In early 2017 (presumably, anyway), Intel will launch Skylake-E which will use the Kaby Lake PCH. At this point, HEDT and mainstream will be well aligned.

At 10nm, I suspect that Intel will launch Cannonlake for mainstream in 2H 2017 (think September/October), then Cannonlake-E in March-ish 2018. Delta shrinks to about six months, which isn't bad.

 

[Fjodor2001]

I think thanks to the 10nm slip, HEDT and mainstream releases will be forced closer together.

In late 2016 Intel will launch Kaby Lake based on the Skylake CPU. In early 2017 (presumably, anyway), Intel will launch Skylake-E which will use the Kaby Lake PCH. At this point, HEDT and mainstream will be well aligned.

At 10nm, I suspect that Intel will launch Cannonlake for mainstream in 2H 2017 (think September/October), then Cannonlake-E in March-ish 2018. Delta shrinks to about six months, which isn't bad.

That would be very nice. But is there any evidence that will actually happen? If anything, the HEDT platform has been falling more and more behind lately compared to the mainstream platform, with regards to chipset, uArch and process node.

 

[Arachnotronic]

That would be very nice. But is there any evidence that will actually happen? If anything, the HEDT platform has been falling more and more behind lately compared to the mainstream platform, with regards to chipset, uArch and process node.

Well, we know that Intel is aiming to converge the chipsets from the leaks, so that much is certain.

As far as process and uArch, I think the delays in mainstream will help HEDT "narrow the gap" so to speak. But we'll see how it ultimately plays out.

I would hope that Intel is aware of the increasing gap you mentioned, and since I am sure they would like to give enthusiasts any and all reason to pay up for higher-end chips, it stands to reason that they are aiming to converge those platforms if possible.

 

[Sweepr]

I don't expect much because Anandtech is doing CPU game tests in a GPU limited environment mainly. In this case faster RAM doesn't help.

True. They should learn a thing or two from The Tech Report. Still, their review with lower than Haswell scores sounded almost trollish compared to the >10% per clock gains @ CPU limited games in other reviews.

 

[dark zero]

That would be very nice. But is there any evidence that will actually happen? If anything, the HEDT platform has been falling more and more behind lately compared to the mainstream platform, with regards to chipset, uArch and process node.

Sadly that is how the industry works now. Without any competition, you must be happy that we are still getting HEDT

 

[Arachnotronic]

Sadly that is how the industry works now. Without any competition, you must be happy that we are still getting HEDT

LOL, you couldn't be more wrong.

 

[Sweepr]

Alienware offers potential free Skylake upgrades for new Haswell, Broadwell laptops

Concerned that your shiny new Alienware laptop won’t have Intel’s latest CPU inside? No problemo. Alienware officially confirmed that it will upgrade buyers of its new Haswell- and Broadwell-based gaming laptops for free if a “new CPU” hits the streets in the next month.

What that essentially means is if you buy one of the newly-announced Alienware laptops with an older Haswell or Broadwell CPU right now, you can qualify for the same version, but rolling Intel’s newer Skylake processors.

Alienware general manager Frank Azor spilled the details on the detail on Twitter and Facebook last week after Intel officially unwrapped the Skylake chip.

Azor wrote on a social post: ““OUR NEW NOTEBOOKS LAUNCHED LAST WEEK. IF YOU BUY ONE & A NEW CPU LAUNCHES WITHIN THE NEXT 30 DAYS, YOU GET A FREE UPGRADE ; ) BADASS.”

www.pcworld.com/article/2982100/lap...grades-for-new-haswell-broadwell-laptops.html

 

[Sweepr]

Latest iPad Pro rumours mention Apple A9X chip, iOS, 64GB base, November launch with limited availability (initially) and premium price tag.

http://9to5mac.com/2015/09/07/ipad-pro-specs

Expect a lot of Skylake-Y comparisons given that the next wave of Windows tablets/convertibles (Core M based) should carry similar or even lower price tags. Also the highest-end iPad Pro will cost almost as much as a Macbook (rumour), so people will have to decide between it and an entry-level 1st/2nd generation Macbook 12''.

According to some websites Intel said Core m7-6Y75 is twice as fast as A8X @ CPU tasks. If higher-clocked HD Graphics 530 GFXBench scores are any indication it shouldn't be far from twice as fast graphics performance too. Let's see what A9X brings to the table, this should be interesting.

Official Apple numbers for the A9X*:
Up to 1.8x CPU performance
Up to 2x GPU performance
2x bandwidth
'Desktop-class CPU'
Faster than 80% of portable PCs shipped in the last 12 months
Graphics tasks, it's faster than 90%

*Compared to the A8X.

Core m7-6Y75 vs A9X will be fun to watch.
They are clearly positioning this against the Surface Pro IMHO, there's even a new keyboard and stylus (Apple Pencil). Nobody convinces me that spending >$800 for a larger iPad will be better than an entry-level Surface Pro 4 (Core i3 6100U) with included keyboard and stylus running a more capable OS.

 

[LTC8K6]

Alienware offers potential free Skylake upgrades for new Haswell, Broadwell laptops



www.pcworld.com/article/2982100/lap...grades-for-new-haswell-broadwell-laptops.html

You can't "upgrade" a Haswell/Broadwell to a Skylake.

You need a new motherboard.

 

[Sweepr]

Base model iPad Pro 32GB WiFi-only costs $799, Apple Pencil $99 and Apple's Keyboard $169 = $1067.
No word on more RAM so I assume it's still 2GB.

Surface Pro 3 powered by Core i5 4200U (Haswell-U), 4GB RAM, 128GB storage with stylus + keyboard included cost $999 at launch.
Assuming Surface Pro 4 costs the same you will be able to buy a Core i5 6200U (Skylake-U), 4GB RAM, 128GB RAM, Windows 10 model for less money than the fully equiped (base model) iPad Pro.

 

[MrTeal]

You can't "upgrade" a Haswell/Broadwell to a Skylake.

You need a new motherboard.

They're BGA chips anyway, a motherboard replacement would be in the cards even if the chipset was compatible.

That announcement is a bit weird anyway. What does it mean for a CPU to launch? Intel announces it? Dell incorporates it into a laptop? It's a pretty good indication Dell won't be having any Skylake based notebooks for another month though.

 

[frozentundra123456]

Official Apple numbers for the A9X*:
Up to 1.8x CPU performance
Up to 2x GPU performance
2x bandwidth
'Desktop-class CPU'
Faster than 80% of portable PCs shipped in the last 12 months
Graphics tasks, it's faster than 90%

*Compared to the A8X.

Core m7-6Y75 vs A9X will be fun to watch.
They are clearly positioning this against the Surface Pro IMHO, there's even a new keyboard and stylus (Apple Pencil). Nobody convinces me that spending >$800 for a larger iPad will be better than an entry-level Surface Pro 4 (Core i3 6100U) with included keyboard and stylus running a more capable OS.

After a certain point, it really becomes a software preference. Do you want Windows or IOS. Personally, I would take Windows definitely, but I am probably in the minority.

Does make you wonder when the start saying "desktop class" if they are thinking about ditching Intel or making an IOS analog to IMac.

 

[Khato]

Does make you wonder when the start saying "desktop class" if they are thinking about ditching Intel or making an IOS analog to IMac.

Since they've been calling their CPU architecture "desktop class" since the A7...

 

[Sweepr]

After a certain point, it really becomes a software preference. Do you want Windows or IOS. Personally, I would take Windows definitely, but I am probably in the minority.

Does make you wonder when the start saying "desktop class" if they are thinking about ditching Intel or making an IOS analog to IMac.

It's an interesting/cool product and like everthing from Apple it should improve dramatically in the next generations. We have to give credit where it is due, up to 80% better CPU performance and up to 2x the graphics performance is impressive (waiting for real tests). Desktop class CPU and console class GPU are pretty bold claims though.

Right now you can buy a Surface Pro 3 Core i5 128GB 4GB RAM (Stylus included) + Keyboard for less than the base iPad Pro 32GB WiFi (2GB RAM) + Keyboard/Stylus. As far as productivity goes, Surface Pro 3 and the soon to be launched Surface Pro 4 are far better choices IMHO.

Looking at Skylake-Y (Core m7-6Y75) vs A9X my prediction is better CPU performance from Intel (especially on ST tasks, I guess A9X is a quad-core). If Apple is quoting GFXBench Manhattan Offscreen for their 2x GPU performance claim then it's going to be an interesting match, HD Graphics 530 can deliver more than double A8X performance in this benchmark but Core M's HD Graphics 515 operates at lower clocks (up to 1GHz vs up to 1.15GHz) so it's going to be close but A9X probably has a slight advantage.

 

[iSkylaker]

i7-6700HQ and i7-6500U review?
http://laptopmedia.com/review/intel...-and-core-i7-6500u-review-features-above-all/

 

[North01]

If Apple is quoting GFXBench Manhattan Offscreen for their 2x GPU performance claim then it's going to be an interesting match, HD Graphics 530 can deliver more than double A8X performance in this benchmark but Core M's HD Graphics 515 operates at lower clocks (up to 1GHz vs up to 1.15GHz) so it's going to be close but A9X probably has a slight advantage.

I don't really see the relevance of comparing the two with an OpenGL ES 3.0 benchmark (Manhattan 3.0 Offscreen).

 

[Idontcare]

They're BGA chips anyway, a motherboard replacement would be in the cards even if the chipset was compatible.

That announcement is a bit weird anyway. What does it mean for a CPU to launch? Intel announces it? Dell incorporates it into a laptop? It's a pretty good indication Dell won't be having any Skylake based notebooks for another month though.

That's exactly what that announcement is. It isn't a "free upgrade" insurance announcement for would-be buyers, it is a guarantee that nothing new is coming in the next 30 days. Alienware is deep enough into Intel to probably know when Cannonlake is launching, let alone Kaby Lake or any other Skylake SKUs.

Its very easy (and free) to talk a talk knowing in advance that Intel isn't going to call your bluff.

 

[Sweepr]

Nice find iSkylaker. Both are prototypes and there's no info on the graphics drivers used, but it shouldn't take too long till OEM notebook reviews anyway.

This slide is new to me:

GT1.5 is not a myth after all, but which product uses it?

 

[Arachnotronic]

Nice find iSkylaker. Both are prototypes and there's no info on the graphics drivers used, but it shouldn't take too long till OEM notebook reviews anyway.

This slide is new to me:

GT1.5 is not a myth after all, but which product uses it?

Apollo Lake

 

[jpiniero]

GT1.5 is not a myth after all, but which product uses it?

Core M?

 

[Shivansps]

Core M is GT2, the only exception is the 4405Y that is GT1.

Nice find iSkylaker. Both are prototypes and there's no info on the graphics drivers used, but it shouldn't take too long till OEM notebook reviews anyway.

This slide is new to me:

GT1.5 is not a myth after all, but which product uses it?

Acording to driver inf, is present on a mobile-U processor and its called HD510 like the GT1, my guess is: 4405U.

From Driver 4274 you can download this from a H170 motherboard web page.

; SKL HW
iSKLULTGT1 = "Intel(R) HD Graphics 510"
iSKLULTGT15 = "Intel(R) HD Graphics 510"
iSKLULTGT2 = "Intel(R) HD Graphics 520"
iSKLULTGT2f = "Intel(R) HD Graphics 520"
iSKLULXGT1 = "Intel(R) HD Graphics"
iSKLULXGT2 = "Intel(R) HD Graphics 515"
iSKLDTGT1 = "Intel(R) HD Graphics 510"
iSKLDTGT2 = "Intel(R) HD Graphics 530"
iSKLHaloGT2 = "Intel(R) HD Graphics 530"

Althought GT1 whould make more sence for 4405U, specially if is the same core as the 4405Y.

 

[Arachnotronic]

Core M?

Pretty sure Core M is GT2.